What a delight to have the very colourful Rachel Daisy speak at out September meeting. This was after a well attended workshop on the weekend where members constructed blocks for their own version of Grow Free, Wildflowers. After just two days there were an impressive number of blocks completed.

Rachel began by explaining that Daisy is her nickname coming from her twenty years as a florist. As her work often features flowers it has stuck and she is quite happy about that.

Her style is eclectic, she takes a technique and sees what she can do with it. Pushing both design and construction limits. The quilt from the workshop is one made during lock down using scraps. Like many quilts made at this time it is rather large.

But then again so are many of Rachel’s quilts.

Grandiflora features an enormous dahlia and was noticed by Victoria Findlay Wolfe as a great example of the style of improvised quilting she was featuring in her 2012 book.

So it can be found in 15 Minutes of Play – this certainly helped get Rachel’s work noticed.

The Red and White quilt was made for the NSW Guild’s 2015 challenge. Doilies are used as fabulous flowers. Chunky Blooms are based on real flowers, for example the ones at the bottom left are stylised callistemons. They are on a denim background – so a rather heavy quilt.

Rachel likes working with denim, and having made a quilt with old jeans she had a lot of left over pockets. The result Pockets full of posies.

The folded technique used in the award winning quilt Whizz Bang has been used in multiple quilts since. An excellent example of how Rachel likes to play with fabric and update old techniques.

Ric Rac Razzamatazz is the first pattern Rachel has written. She wanted to find a way to create an orange peel quilt by machine. Not liking the look of raw edge appliqué the over size ric rac solved the problem and the quilt also features lots of yo yos another favoured element.

Seeing possibilities outside the quilt world Rachel entered her tea towel quilt I love a sunburnt country into the Pro Hart award in Broken Hill where it was awarded second prize alongside works more in the fine art tradition.

We look forward to future show and tell nights were we will see not only the completed results of the September workshop but also where Rachel Daisy’s inspiring talk has taken our members.